The Power Posture

A couple of weeks ago I shared a blog about the power of personal brand – and, as part of that, I touched on perceptions and how we can use simple tools that help create a desired perception of ourselves. 

In my experience, though,  there are two overarching aspects to creating an impression  – the best ‘us’ we can be – and these are body language and posture. Both of these form a huge part of our personal brand both in the physical sense; but also and increasingly in a virtual sense.

So, in today’s blog I want to chat a little more about what this means, and how we can start to consider how body language – if you like our ‘power pose’  – can deliver a positive and memorable first impression, through our personal brand. 

What psychologists say…

In 2012,  ‘the Power Pose’ (sometimes called the ‘Power Posture’) was a huge talking point, and this followed a TED talk delivered by Amy Cuddy. Amy is a social psychologist – rapidly attaining celeb status – who argued that by “power posing” – that is standing in a posture of confidence, even when we don’t feel confident -can boost feelings of confidence,  and would likely have an impact on our chances for success.

Put simply, if we look like we mean business we are more likely to convey that we do mean business (even if, inwardly, we still hold reservations.)

Her session is now the second most viewed TED talk ever,  and her theory/ approach has been used across the globe from world leaders, politicians and public speakers right through to people going for a job interview or speaking up at a meeting. 

The Power Pose – Image from ‘The Guardian’

(Anyone remember a number of senior politicians standing like this when making key note speeches a couple of years ago? I will mention a bit more about politicians using techniques below.)

So, what does this mean in relation to personal branding? 

Now, it will not have escaped anyone that I am not a social psychologist myself. But I have witnessed hundreds of ‘pitches’ or situations where the power of the first impression is vital. So, I have also witnessed the success of Amy’s theory. I have used it myself and I have also observed how many entrepreneurs and leaders I have worked with across the length of my career have used the approach.

First impressions…

So, if we then go on to think a bit more about first impressions – and how people you meet arrive at these  – I believe you have two opportunities to adopt the ‘Power Pose’ approach and to create a sense of confidence.

The first of these is in a face to face encounter – and your body language and posture are crucial here.

But the second is maybe a little more nebulous, and this is the first impression created by the images people see of you – for example, a headshot photograph. But this visual imagery is becoming increasingly important as social media explodes.

I have recently been running a number of workshops recently to help individuals understand and use the power of personal brand. Last week’s blog touched upon one of these for Northern Tech Women. In this workshops, I touch on this issue of body language and explain how other people can create a judgement about us, before we have even spoken. The research suggests people have made their mind up in around 10 seconds. See this ‘Business insider’ article for a good summary.

So, its important we consider this, IF we want to create our desired (and most of the time, positive) first impression.  We are going to create one anyway, so why’d not make it a good one and one we are in control of?

Having talked a lot about how a successful brand provokes an emotional reaction, and the importance of openness in our body language I should also keep it real. I do approach that we all suffer from nerves and self-confidence issues. So, it’s not always that easy, our brains can focus on nerves as opposed to helping us think about what we might be doing with our hands or feet! I know mine does anyway – but its about making a start

Political Example…

I really don’t intend to talk about hardly at all within this blog, as I am sure we have all had enough of this subject through other platforms. But in the context of perception and body language I think it’s worth saying a bit more to build on the oblique reference above.Earlier this week I was speaking with a friend of mine about how politicians use different techniques to deliver a speech. Someone that springs for obvious reasons is Boris Johnson. Whether you love or loathe Boris – agree or disagree – he has certainly grabbed everyone’s attention.  He has been open about his admiration for Winston Churchill, so much so he has written a book on him; and openly admits that he uses similar techniques picked up from Churchill when speaking publicly himself. (Check out this video from The Telegraph) including everything from breathing, terminology and posture. 

As I say whether you think Boris portrays a positive or negative impact through his personal brand and speech –  he creates impact and it can be worth trying to learn something even from people you maybe don’t like or disagree with.

Where KComms can help

So, on that note I would like to leave you with a little shameless plug, if this issue of first impression – and power posturing – is something you want to consider, we can help you There are some simple techniques you can use to overcome nerves, to exude confidence and to help you deliver a powerful first impression.  You are going to deliver an impression anyway – why not make it a good one especially if you are in a position where the consequences of a bad impression can have a major impact for you and your career.

I look forward to hearing any thoughts of feedback from you all. 

Have a fantastic week,

Kristina x 

Something to think about…

One thing I talk a lot about, not only within my blog but during my everyday conversations with clients, as well as my broader network – is how to use the power of brand to create a POSITIVE impact. 

This week, though, a news story caught my attention – and captured the attention of millions of others (I ‘clocked it’ on the BBC news). 

Amazingly it was footage from a real funeral – which, ordinarily, would be a terribly sad and upsetting thing to watch (and unlikely to go viral for positive reasons). 

However, this particular video was quite different – take a look and see for yourself (WARNING – don’t watch if you are easily offended by expletives…)

This didn’t make me laugh because in the end it is still a funeral; but it did make me smile and it’s memorable – and illustrates how one individual can turn something so sad into something so uplifting and joyful. Not only for his family (probably why they put it online) but at the same time capturing the attention of the thousands of other people. 

It shouldn’t be surprising that on the morning after the funeral the hashtag ‘#Shayslastlaugh’ was trending as number one on Twitter and all the major news outlets and publications were talking about it – and media channels covering it in one way or another.

So this got me thinking…because it’s yet another incredible example of how we all have the ability to design and influence our story and the perception we create – even from beyond the grave. I have never met the guy concerned, obviously, but I am left with an impression of a guy with a great sense of humour and a deep affection for his family and someone who wants to leave a legacy that makes people smile. It therefore illustrates that you don’t have to be a celebrity, or a politician or perhaps some other public figure that, traditionally, has some level of public influence to share a positive message. 

Linked to this, then, one of the core elements I talk about in my workshops and in my 121s with clients, is how (I believe, and I hope I can convince others) positivity will always win! 

As we head into very uncertain times with the looming Brexit deadline, the Extinction Rebellion protests ( my journey today was a disaster as a consequence) etc (  many other big issues)  it remains important to remember that we all have a choice about the impact we can make: and we do that as individuals through our persona or  our ‘personal brand’. 

I wanted to keep this blog short and sweet and so I leave you with one simple question…how can you create a positive impact?

So, a huge thanks to Shay and his family for brightening my day and taking joy from sadness, and for a salutary reminder not to waste the time we have and do what you can to have a positive impact.

Have a fantastic week everyone – I am off to answer my own questions, and do just that myself!

Kristina x 

Brand You Masterclass

This week, I have launched my first ‘proper’ event under the KComms umbrella – a ‘Brand YOU Masterclass’. 

So, I thought in today’s blog I would share a little more about this event and my rationale for putting it on, and, hopefully, what you can expect from me in the future. 

To add some context – as I mentioned last week – I have been spending a lot of my time since starting the business speaking to people about the nature of what is needed. And sharing a little more insight about my views and experience of personal branding and profile – and these conversations have helped me tease out where I think can add real value.

I suppose some might call this ‘market research’, helping me evolve the concept of the business based on the want and need of the market. 

This insight then has led me to start working on several, different areas where I can help and where the business can add value, and especially where my own experience adds the differentiator.  It is, after all, the reason I decided to go out on my own.

My original thinking, setting up KComms, was to work with CEO’s and business leaders of businesses on a larger scale or with the potential to be a big business (as this is where the majority of my experience sits). But, in fact, my conversations have led me to realise that applying ‘big brand’ thinking can be really helpful for small business owners; in fact it’s essential to help them scale up. And, the evidence ( well virtually all the conversations)  suggests there is a high demand!

So, step forward KComms 🙂

My idea has been to develop a potted version of a bigger workshop, but one that still gives business leaders really practical tools and advice to help them with their personal brand development. Additionally, I want to also create a networking environment, for those budding entrepreneurs to meet other people in similar positions. 

I have found that, whilst life as an emerging entrepreneur is exciting, it’s also scary ( for pretty much everyone it turns out). So being able to be part of a network and a group learning things together can be helpful to someone in relation to their personal resilience, as much as its about learning tips and techniques for their business life.

So – what is the Brand YOU Masterclass? 

In nutshell, it’s a masterclass designed to help business owners understand the power of personal brand to help them grow their business. 

In today’s multi-media world business leaders and entrepreneurs have a huge opportunity to use their position of influence to deliver impact; both within their business and through their external profile. However, without careful consideration of perceptions and brand,  then those leaders might well be making the wrong impact. (Or, worse none at all. What was it Oscar Wilde said, “ there is only one thing worse than being talked about..and that’s not being talked about!” ). 

This workshop therefore combines some aspects of marketing and branding and helps delegates understand the power of their story or their brand – and gives some tips to help those leaders manage their profile and influence. 

So if this is something you are interested in then please come along! Click here for tickets.

I should add that it will be good fun too! There will be some food and fizz  –  supplied by the wonderful people from Atticus.  

Of course, if you have any questions please don’t hesitate to get in touch with me and I have included links to all my social channels below. 

I believe amazing things can happen when people collaborate, so, moving forward,  I am looking to do just that through more of this type of event and more networking where I can bring the KComms way to many more people directly or by  ‘partnering’ with others. So, if you can’t make this one then don’t worry, more  will follow. ( Although it would still be great to have as many people as possible kicking things off so I can get feedback as well as and build and enhance the approach.)

That’s it from me this week, I hope everyone is having a great weekend! 

Happy Sunday,

Kristina x 

Feeling Inspired

It’s been another jam-packed week filled with more client work, spending time in London, and a lot of late nights working on ideas. 

This month I have been focussing on getting the KComms message out there – I can’t really be advising clients without walking the talk and having my own brand strategy. 

So, with that in mind, I have officially labelled September ‘brand awareness’ month,  to allow myself some time to focus on raising the brand profile of KComms. 

Although, I have an incredibly supportive network of people around me, so I feel very lucky that  a number of my friends have been doing a lot of the hard work for me. The result is that things are progressing quicker than I anticipated (really nice problem to have right??) 

Anyway,  it has been a busy week, I would like to dedicate today’s blog to one particular subject – a simple ( but huge and heartfelt) thank you. 

This follows on from a busy day yesterday, where I had the privilege of being asked to speak at Edge Hill university, to 100 women all  who were taking part in the ‘TechUp Women’ programme. 

This programme is a six-month course for women from the Midlands and North of England – particularly from underrepresented communities – retraining in technology. Or, more specifically,  cyber, software development, business analysis services and project design. 

Following the course, these women will get the opportunity to go for interviews with top tech companies for either full time jobs  or in some cases apprenticeships. 

I was asked to speak about personal branding and then run a more focused workshop. I was especially keen to concentrate on providing advice and tips not only in how to create a powerful first impression through brand, but also, help others understand what impact their personal brand can have  in helping other people achieve their personal and professional goals. 

Speaking at Edge Hill University abut the power of personal brand

Having each other’s back…

A huge part of what I believe makes a powerful personal brand is authenticity. So I felt it was important to be clear at the beginning of my talk that, whilst I was speaking as a ‘founder’ of a business – in fact – until recently I would never have believed that I would be sharing my story and advice in this guise. But that is exactly what I was doing. 

On finishing this first sentence, I was met with an overwhelming round of applause from all of the women in the room!  It really did make me feel emotional – not to say anxious as the rest of my session had a lot now to live up to. But the idea that these women were so supportive without really knowing me, felt incredible. More importantly it reaffirmed what is so special about communities of women ‘sisters doing it for themselves’ – genuinely there to have each other’s back and support one another. 

All of the incredible women taking part in the TechUp programme

The support that was there today was undeniable.  And although I was there to share some of my knowledge and experience, in fact I felt like I too learnt something from being surrounded  by so many strong and very capable and talented women. 

So today my blog is dedicated to all the women I met, I just want to say a simple thank you. 

Thank you for your support, and inspiration I can’t wait to see what the future holds for each and every one of you. 

Kristina X 

A Whirlwind Week

It has been another whirlwind week, filled with a lot of excitement and ‘positive energy’.

I mentioned in my first post, my goal with this blog is to share an honest insight into my new world, setting up a business from scratch. And I had every intention of writing up really considered material every single week.

But full disclosure… this week has been a manic one; focussing all of my resource on new opportunities and time heavy projects . And, given the fact that I am currently flying solo – instead of a theme, I thought I would share some insights and reflections from a very exciting week!

Here are my highlights…

• New client work
• Public speaking to a group of amazing women
• Entry onto the NatWest accelerator programme…
• Oh, and I ran the Great North Run half marathon!

I will just say a little about each of these – as a just a few words is probably pushing it a bit to do justice to the idea of a blog. 

I started with my first session, working with a new client.  As I am sure people can imagine, when you are just starting out, you always wonder if people will want to buy what you are offering so it’s a great feeling when you start putting your ideas and concepts into practice and clients start to feel the real benefit (and of course there is an obvious sense of relief that you are not totally crazy to try this!).

Another big moment this week was undertaking my first public speaking event in my new role as the ‘Founder of KComms’. This was an event run in partnership between Northern Power Women and NatWest Bank. It formed part of a series of events running across the North West geared towards discussing key findings from the ‘Alison Rose Review’. 

This is a key report – long overdue in my view – and provides an excellent overview of the female entrepreneur landscape, including some of the challenges facing women when setting up a business. Crucially it suggests ways in which we can collectively address those challenges. I should add it is a report that men will find just as useful as women – but check it out yourself.

One of the challenges highlighted within the review, though, reflects the evidence some incredibly talented women lack confidence in themselves (many suffer from imposter syndrome) but, more specifically, find it really difficult to ‘sell themselves’. So, I was asked to the conference to share my insight and experience around how personal brandingcan be used as a platform to help women grow and rebuild confidence to deliver a powerful message. 

This included sharing my story behind why I am making the leap into the female founder world.

I was overwhelmed by how many incredibly talented women (and even a couple of very brave men) who were in the room. Each of them on their own journey to setting up a business or doing something epic. But yet, lacked confidence in sharing their story. 

Here with my fellow speakers including tSimone Roche MBE (founder of Northern Power Women) and Heather Waters NatWest Enterprise manager.

So, it felt great to be able to chat to so many who seemed to react positively to my advice. (It also led to another speaking opportunity along with a couple of prospect clients…WINNER!)

The third thing I wanted to share was my excitement at being accepted onto the NatWest Banks’ Accelerator programme for new businesses and entrepreneurs. I am not altogether sure what it entails – it kicks off next week so I will keep you updated – but I figure I must be onto something if a Bank thinks me worth supporting and tracking.

Finally, I ran the Great North Half Marathon last Sunday – what a great day and what fantastic Geordie/ Macca hospitality. The atmosphere was just incredible.

I am still quite new to running – I only discovered my love for it about a year ago, but it has been one of the best discoveries of my life. It’s is my therapy, my thinking time – and, in fact, the only time I will not go near my phone for anything work related. (Though I will listen to business podcasts alongside a bit of Whitney.)

But being surrounded by 57,000 like-minded others who joined the race, alongside the thousands that lined the streets cheering, just gave me an overwhelming feeling of pride. 

Huge smile after crossing the finish line with my fellow running pals Trish and Daryl

You see so many people running in aid of so many different charities, people running in full fancy dress, pushing wheelchairs, one guy even completed the course with a bicycle attached to his back! It really was food for the soul and a race I can’t recommend highly enough. 

Altogether a week full of exciting conversations, lots of hard work and so, so many ideas! 

That is all for this week folks, I am off to prepare for a busy week and start turning these ideas into actions. I hope everyone has a great week! 

Kristina x 

The Power of Personal Brand

What a week…

I have to be honest with everyone and admit to more than a slight sense of fear (well, to be really honest – terror) just before hitting the go-live button of KComms. Regardless of the huge amount of work invested in designing the concept behind the business, and regardless of the passion I feel for the opportunity.  

It’s only natural that I was always going to question whether others would share my enthusiasm. 

But I have to say ‘wow’ – because the response I have had from a lot people has been incredible, and massively more than I hoped for even in my more optimistic moments. I can’t do justice really to expressing how much I appreciate the support, the positive feedback, and the encouragement to crack on…so I will. 

As promised then, in my blog this week I am going to share a little more about the wonderful world of personal brand and talk a little (I could talk a lot) about why I believe this relates to entrepreneur success! 

But, first, let’s start with the basics… 

What do I mean when I use the term ‘brand’? 

For me, brand can be best understood as the sense of personality that lies behind or really defines and crystallises the product or service on offer.  And, whilst I appreciate it might sound a bit boring in isolation, in my experience from working with big brands (not to mention the view of experts such as Simon Sinek) brand is the reason WHY people buy. 

A successful brand, however, doesn’t just address an obvious need or a logical, well thought out requirement, rather it provokes more of an emotional response. We have all been there when we know we don’t NEED something, but we want it because we have an emotional trigger driving us. 

To make the point, I have no need for a MacBook, an iMac, an iPad (and iPad mini) an Apple Watch and, of course, the latest iPhone – but I am an Apple superfan, they all work together and so I have them all.  And, for some reason just having one isn’t good enough, because I like to have the latest one, meaning that I pay an extortionate monthly bill to have the luxury of upgrading every year.  But the sense of fulfilment I get comes from feeding my emotional need to have the latest tech, as opposed to addressing my technology needs/requirements. (Please tell me I am not alone in this?). 

My home office filled with multiple Apple products!

It’s important to note, here, though, that a brand and a business are two very different things…but that’s a discussion in its own right!

So, what does this mean for the notion of a personal brand? 

We all have a way we like to look or a way we want to be seen or a way we would like to be –  if you like, this is our personal brand; to a large degree it comes from our personality (though phycologists may argue about this).  

But it is how we bring our personal brand to life that makes it special and creates what I believe to be an incredible opportunity for entrepreneurs and leaders – because for these people their personal brand – and its success or otherwise  – can have a massive impact on the businesses they own and run, or the organisations they lead.

If you think about it, we all provoke an emotional reaction in others when we interact with them and, most of the time, we can control what that reaction is through our body language, our tone of voice, our facial expressions, and, of course, our terminology/use of expression. 

But can we exert an influence over how people see our personal brand without physical interaction? And can that be a large number of people? Imagine if, for example, an individual could have the same impact as big brands such as Apple, Amazon, Compare the Market or Nike?  

We can!! But, first, we have to start thinking of ourselves as brands and then things start to get really interesting – designing an approach to personal brand creation by applying fundamental methods and approaches that successful brands use to create and share their brand story. In a sense developing the personal story and personal story telling.

Shameless plug alert!!! (Well, it is my blog)

So…that approach is exactly what we do at KComms – we apply a similar formula (built upon our years of experience in marketing and communications and our 3d approach) to help entrepreneurs define, design and then deliver their own personal brand. 

How can this help entrepreneurs succeed? 

Once a personal brand is established (though, sadly, this isn’t something that happens overnight) you then start to think about the IMPACT your brand (and inherently your story and content) can have on the world?  And hopefully it’s a positive impact – but it’s this idea of impact that drives our mission statement at KComms, to; 

       ‘Use the power of brand to accelerate the worlds leading entrepreneurs’ 

When I was thinking about setting up the business, I tested this mission statement with a good friend of mine (not to mention a successful entrepreneur in his own right) Vikas Shah. 

His reaction was awesome – the simple use of the word power reflects the power (and responsibility) we all possess as individuals, but it also reflects the latent – but incredible – impact that some of the world’s leading entrepreneurs have had through their own personal brands. I have been very lucky to have met a number of these entrepreneurs over the years and in some cases the brand and the reality have aligned – but in some cases not? Which tells me that a personal brand can be managed and can be designed to use multiple media channels to have the necessary impact to grow multiple businesses, to influence social change or social movements, to raise awareness of geo-political/ global challenges …the list goes on. 

Essentially the world’s leading entrepreneurs are some of the most powerful story tellers; and ultimately, they are creating the legacy they want to leave. 

It was also this idea of doing something good (whilst still trying to build a successful business myself) that led me to the KComms tagline ‘Build A Legacy’

So, I guess the question I want leave with all the entrepreneurs and leaders out there is, what legacy do you want to leave?

And on that (I hope) thought-provoking note I will close this week’s blog.

I am a woman of my word, so I have tried to stick to my promise of a shorter blog than last week – but it is hard because I have lots of thoughts and ideas that want to tumble out.  

I hope you found this interesting and of course please get in touch me with me if you want to find out more. 

Thanks 

Kristina x 

Next Week’s Blog: Public speaking…getting yourself out there!

Where it all begins…

If you had said to me this time last year … “Kristina, in a years’ time you are going to leave the corporate world and an incredible job as Marketing (Board) Director at UKFast, one of the Country’s leading tech companies (as well as a Times Top Employer) to start your own business…”I genuinely would have thought you had lost the plot! 

However, life’s not a dress rehearsal and I decided to go for it. 

• 

So, here I am today officially announcing to the world that KComms Entrepreneur Management Agency is open for business! 

But I thought I would also mark the occasion with a first blog in my new role(s). I will try to do a blog each week, and, by doing so, I am aiming to take those of you interested on the journey with me – learning as we go about what life is like, starting a business from scratch.

In the first instance, I thought it helpful to say a little bit about going from intrapreneurto entrepreneur, but, importantly, my reason WHY. 

My journey so far…

As a young girl, whenever anybody asked me, “Kristina what do you want to be when you are older?”, my answer would always be, “I want to run my own business”.  (Alongside, of course, the obvious Spice Girls dream, though unless the world went tone death that dream was unlikely to become a reality). 

At that tender age, though, I never really heard the word ‘entrepreneur’ used and had no idea what type of business I wanted to run. I just knew I had a fascination with business, but especially marketing, branding and leadership. 

So, I went to study marketing and communications at university (graduating with a 2:1) and, when the time came to move on with a career, I took my first steps into the world of work by securing a job at L’Oréal’s London HQ. 

L’Oréal was an amazing experience, but my fascination with business – and my hunger and ambition to succeed (not to mention loving my London life) – led me to think about spreading my wings. I asked myself where should I go to learn about multiple – and varied – businesses simultaneously; and how could I gain access to senior business leaders, without spending the years it takes to work my way up a single organisation?

I then had my aha moment!

I realised that the world of media agencies provided this variety and access – and it worked! 

Over the next 8 years I went from an Executive to a Director, rapidly working my way up the media agency ranks. I worked within the Country’s Top 3 Agency Groups – Publicis, WPP and Dentsu Aegis– working closely with some of the world’s leading brands.  These brands included Compare the Market, Nivea, Morrisons, B&Q and, of course, L’Oréal. The roles I undertook gave me access to multiple business leaders (not to mention an amazing day spent with Ant and Dec and Robbie Williams when Morrisons sponsored “Saturday Night Takeaway’ a personal highlight). More relevantly, my roles enabled me to start formulating my thinking and to build a deep understanding of what makes a business successful but, crucially, understanding how impactful and powerful branding and marketing can be. 

I had never really labelled or considered CEO’s or leaders as entrepreneurs to this point – they were just my ‘bosses’ really, but I was starting to recognise a consistent set of characteristics or profiles that successful leaders seemed to have. 

After a long run in the agency world, though, I was starting to get itchy feet (and I had also maxed out ‘living the dream’ in London). But I still wasn’t ready to go it alone. I hadn’t figured out what my product would be, although I believed I had gained a huge amount of knowledge and I had learned a lot from so many inspiring people. I wanted the chance to put my learning into practice as a business leader myself, but to do so still within the corporate world. 

Enter the “Jones family” …

My introduction into the world of entrepreneurship truly took off when I was introduced to Lawrence and Gail Jones, co-founders of UKFast(not to mention many, other businesses).

I had heard of Lawrence as a leading entrepreneur and businessman. I followed him on social media. I had always enjoyed the way he expressed his views. I vividly remember my first meeting with both him and Gail, which was intended to be a discussion about the possibility of joining UKFast as Director of Marketing. Got to say it was my first – and only – job interview I have ever had where I got to meet the whole family (Babies and pets and all) who almost form part of the interview panel! 

Notwithstanding the different setting, it was evident from the get-go that their shared ambitions, passions, and commitment to grow not only UKFast, but all of their businesses were enormous.

I remember Lawrence saying to me, “I want someone who has ambitions to be the marketing director of Apple, because that’s where we are heading…” and I just thought, ‘Wow, this is where I am meant to be’. 

There was something about Lawrence and Gail that I related to, and I instantly felt part of something impressive – it was meant to be a job interview,  but, instead, it felt like I was having a brew with friends and being welcomed into a big family. 

The following two and half years were a whirlwind – but exhilarating – not least, because I had the privilege of working side by side with both Lawrence and Gail. 

Within three months of joining the business I was asked on to the Board as Marketing Director, a very proud moment to be able to engage in business strategy and to be part of the key decision making of a growing and modern business. 

Throughout my time with this amazing team I was lucky enough to work across their business portfolio including their Hotel and Ski Resort ‘Farinet’ in Verbier ( a dirty job but someone has to do it :-)); Business Cloud, their own publishing platform; Tech Manchester a not for profit incubator for start-ups; and, of course, everything that sat under UKFast Banner–   including education, tech and cyber security. 

But, my favourite part of my role was working closely with Lawrence on his personal brand development and seeing the impact this had on growing the UKFast businesses as well. 

Lawrence gave me masses of advice as well as first-hand experience, immersing myself into all things entrepreneurial and the power of personal brand. In this context I was able to meet some of the world’s most famous entrepreneurs, for example, Richard Branson and James Timpson to mention but a couple. Crucially, I started to recognise the one consistent thing each, successful entrepreneur had in common…a powerful personal brand. 

From Intrapreneur to Entrepreneur 

Making the decision to leave UKFast was tough, I had never labelled myself an entrepreneur and I didn’t really think of myself as one. 

Yet, all I have ever wanted to do was build a business from scratch, but a business that helped people as well as being successful.

During my time with entrepreneurs I had noticed a huge gap in the market, where I could combine all of my media agency experience, aligning it to my personal branding and entrepreneurship experience, and create something different (and I believe) special.

The biggest lesson I had learned from working with so many inspiring people was that sometimes you just have to go for it!!!! 

And so here I am – KCommunicationsGroup(or KComms for short) – the Entrepreneur Management Agency is born. 

How can I build a legacy? 

By helping other Entrepreneurs do just that! 

I hope you have found my potted history of how I have got to today reasonably informative and I look forward to sharing my journey with you over the coming months and hopefully years. 🙂

Kristina x

Next week’s (shorter) blog; The Power of Personal Brand